Darcy's Keeper
by ThisNightIsOurs
Summary: When Loki's latest bit of mischief endangers the life of Darcy, his punishment is to help Darcy acclimate to her new situation back on Earth. Set after Avengers, all of that mess has passed. LokiXDarcy Rated T for some sketchy language and vague sexual situations.
1. Explosions, an Apple, and Gossip

**A/N: **Takes place after the Avengers, Loki's been forgiven and accepted back into Asgard, and Thor lives on Earth with Jane.

CHAPTER 1 - Explosions, an Apple, and Gossip

It felt like my skin was falling off.

I screamed, dropping the phone I was holding and falling to my knees. My ears were ringing from the explosion, and I couldn't see anything. Had I gone blind? I knew my eyes were open, but I could see nothing. I felt around and clutched onto my leg. Was that... was that my bone I was touching?

I immediately let go, and the overwhelming smell of smoke stole my consciousness from me.

Goddamn smoke.

* * *

"Darcy? Darcy, are you there?" Jane said, pressing the phone close to her ear. She had been talking to her best friend about needing to get together sometime and how much the distance things sucks because Jane and Thor had to be in New York for a couple weeks, and there was a horribly loud noise on Darcy's end.

"Darcy? You're scaring me." Suddenly, she heard a loud, piercing scream. _Darcy_. The call cut off.

"Oh my God. THOR!" Jane ran as fast as she could to her bedroom, where her beloved was taking a nap. He woke up quickly, understanding immediately that something was wrong.

"Jane, my dearest. What is the matter?" Thor stood up and rushed over to where she stood, shell-shocked and completely white.

"Darcy is in trouble you have to go to her NOW!"

Thor's eyes widened. "Where?"

"She's in Albuquerque. It sounded like an explosion, so I am positive you can find her right away. Leave NOW! Please!" Her eyes were borderline manic. Thor immediately grabbed Mjolnir and ran out the door. He was gone before she even had the time to turn around.

Jane slowly sat down on the floor of her bedroom. If anything happened to her... she didn't know what she would do. Darcy had been there for her when no one else was. Darcy was her very closest friend. Her _only _close friend, now that Jane worked for S.H.E.I.L.D. She would completely lose her mind if anything happened to her.

She wished so badly to be able to do something, but until Thor returned, she could do nothing but sit. And wait.

* * *

Thor reached the explosion sight faster than he thought possible. He hoped, so badly, that there was nothing seriously wrong with Darcy. He'd grown to care for her as a little sister, and Jane would be devastated if anything had happened to her friend. He thought to himself, _She must be okay. She must be. _

How wrong he was.

The sight of Darcy was terrifying. It looked as though she was already dead. Her body was entirely covered in blood, her clothes mere tatters around her. He could see that there was a chunk of skin gone from her right leg, and it was bleeding profusely. It was clear that she had already lost consciousness.

Thor picked her up, and quickly took them to the Bifrost site. "Heimdall! You must open the Bifrost. This mortal needs help. Please, Heimdall!" Suddenly, in a swirl of colors and light, Thor and Darcy were picked up by the Bifrost, and taken quickly to Asgard.

"Just hold on, Darcy," Thor pleaded with the unconscious woman. "We're going to help you."

* * *

"He did WHAT?" Sif straightened her back stiffly. There is no way she was hearing this. Ridiculous.

"It's true. I saw her myself. I don't know what the Allfather will do, but Thor is taking this very seriously. Apparently the woman is his lover's best friend." The largest of the Warrior's Three sat back and took a swig of ale.

"What-" Sif was cut off by the door to their common room opening.

"The two of you are worse than my mother. No end to this gossiping nonsense." Loki strode into the room, stopping next to the chairs they were sitting at and looking down at the fire, scowling.

"Have you heard any news?" Sif asked, perched on the edge of her seat.

Loki sighed, the lines on his forehead smoothing out. "Yes. The Allfather will do what Thor asks. Only because he does not wish to see Thor ostracizing his family. Though I can't understand why he would want someone as unimportant as a lover's friend eating from the apple..."

At his last words, both comrades stood up quickly. "You don't mean-?"

"That can't be!"

Loki smiled dryly. "Oh, but it is. I mean exactly what I say. Shocking, is it not, that Thor needs not to even beg before the Allfather does exactly what he wants. This would have never happened had it been me asking for this ridiculous favor."

Sif and Volstagg looked at each other warily. Loki seemed even more angsty lately. He always hated it when Thor got exactly what he wanted, which was nearly always. But even the two of them were a little surprised that Odin was doing this for Thor. It had never been done for this reason before. Turning a human immortal, simply because someone would be sad if she wasn't? Odin must have an alternative reason for granting such a thing so easily.

"So then... the woman, will she live here?" Volstagg asked, still confused.

Loki frowned. "I do not know. I know that Thor would like for her to be returned to Earth for Jane's sake, but she will have much to learn. I don't know what's going to happen."

What Loki did know was that it had been his own fault the girl was here in the first place. He was mad at himself, not because he felt guilt, but because it was because of him a stupid girl was getting the ultimate gift. And Odin was sure to find out.

**A/N:**

So, hi! This is my first Thor story, and I hope you guys enjoy it! I've been kind of obsessed with shipping Loki/Darcy lately, so I'm pretty excited about this story! Also, sorry if some of my facts about Asgard and this whole world aren't quite right, I was too lazy to actually research. If you have any good information for me, let me know!

**Update: **Thanks, **ain13, **for pointing out my mistake with the apples! :)


	2. Darcy's New Keeper

CHAPTER 2 - Darcy's New Keeper

The light was completely blinding.

My first thought was _Hell yes! I'm not blind!_ But then I remembered the explosion, the feeling of my skin falling off, and the feel of my bone beneath my fingers. I bolted up into sitting position as I moved the blanket out of the way of my leg.

Nothing. My leg was completely fine. Thank goodness.

I looked around. I was in a very large room that was positively covered in bright, striking gold. The blanket that had been covering me looked like it was made of liquid silver. Felt like it, too. Huh.

I got up slowly and swung my legs over the side of the bed. I felt very strong for some reason. And I was in a very weird outfit... like a dress that you would only see in that Tangled movie. And it was bright red. _Where the hell am I?_

I went to the window, where the blinds were drawn. I carefully pulled the fabric aside, and...

"What the fuck?" I yelled, and jumped back. It didn't look like... it didn't look like Earth outside. It looked like a goddamn alien planet made out of gold! What in the _hell _was I doing there?

I backed away from the window and sat down on a chair that was against the wall. I started to panic. What in god's name was I doing on an alien planet, and how did I get better? I was in an explosion for Christ's' sake!

The idea that I was on an alien planet didn't come so hard for me, because I used to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. with Jane. For a brief period of time, before I quit to go work as a professor's assistant in Albuquerque. I was just getting sick of being surrounded by so many secrets. Some of them I was a part of, and some of them I wasn't, which was okay, but government work just wasn't for me.

Oh, and of course there was the fact that Jane's boyfriend is from a completely different realm.

So, yeah, I knew about the different realms and everything, but I didn't expect to find myself on a different one after being caught in an explosion. Talk about a weird day. Or something. I didn't actually know how long I'd been there.

There was a knock on the door, and I stood up. "Come in?" I said, kind of timidly for me.

The door opened and a breathtakingly beautiful woman dressed in a flowy silver dress walked - or rather, glided - in the room. I stood up, recognizing that this woman was someone of importance. She smiled at me.

"Hello, dear. I am Frigga, Queen of Asgard. I'd wager you're more than slightly confused."

Yeah, she hit the bulls-eye with that one. "Yes. What happened to me?"

Frigga frowned slightly, her eyes hardening. "You were badly injured at the hand of someone who knows better. And I assure you, the one who did this to you didn't actually mean you harm."

I held up my hands. "Wait, wait. Are you telling me you know who blew up the building? But, you aren't from Earth. Which would mean it had to be someone from here. Oh!" It dawned on me. My brain was starting to clear up, finally, and I could think my situation through thoroughly now. "Asgard. You must be Thor's mother!" I smiled at her more warmly now that I understood who she was. Thor must have brought me here, because Jane knew something happened to me. Of course. I breathed a sigh of relief.

She smiled and leaned her head forward in acknowledgement. "Yes, I am. Thor brought you to Odin because you were very, very badly injured. Beyond repair, I'm afraid."

I scrunched my eyebrows together, thrown by that comment. Beyond repair? But I felt fine... better than fine, really...

Someone else knocked on the door, and I looked beyond Frigga and saw Thor. He brightened when he saw me. "Darcy! You are well! This is great news!" He moved to stand next to his mother, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek when he reached her.

"Thor! Hey! Thank you for, you know, saving my life." I grinned at him, and he moved forward to give me a bone-crushing hug.

"Oh! Air! I really, really like to breathe, and I can't right now!" He laughed loudly and let me go, ruffling my hair. He really was like the brother I never had.

Frigga cleared her throat and looked pointedly at Thor. "Thor, dear, maybe you should explain to Miss Lewis what happened to her?"

Thor dropped his smile and his face grew almost angry. "Of course, Mother. Maybe we'd be more comfortable in the common room."

And so we walked through a couple of huge hallways with intricately decorated gold ceilings. I couldn't do anything but gape at the ceiling as Thor and Frigga led me to wherever we were going.

We stopped at a giant oak door that led to a room with a fireplace and leather couches. The ceiling was so high that it was in shadow and I couldn't see it. I sat down on one couch, and Thor and Frigga sat on the one in front of it, facing me. I braced myself for what they had to tell me.

Thor cleared his throat. "Darcy, you know who my brother is."

I furrowed my eyebrows, confused. "Um, of course I know who your brother is. He tried to take over my planet."

"Right. You also know that it's in my brother's nature to... what is that expression your kind uses? Ah, yes, screw things up."

I narrowed my eyes. Oh, I knew where this was going. "That asshole blew up the building, didn't he?"

Thor's eyes grew wide. "Well, uh, yes. But he meant you no harm, Darcy. He was just doing what he does: causing mischief. The building that he blew up was abandoned." Before I could say any more, he plowed on through. "And you were very, very badly injured. Blind in both eyes, many broken bones, concussion, and a chunk of skin on your leg completely gone, causing extreme blood loss. And, of course, you were very badly burned. If I hadn't gotten you here in time, you would not have lived."

My eyes were wide. I hadn't realized that it was that bad. I looked down at myself. I seemed completely fine now. "How long have I been here?"

It looked like Thor was about to lie to me. His face was an open book. But he sighed. "About three days."

I looked back down at myself, my eyes wide, my breathing shallow. No way. No way in hell that was possible. I touched my leg where it had been missing skin. Perfectly fine. I looked back up at Thor. "What did you guys do to me?" I didn't know if there was some kind of miracle medicine here or whatever, but something was telling me that there wasn't. I had a horrible feeling I knew what they did, and I pushed back the thought instantly. Impossible.

I looked at Frigga when Thor didn't answer me right away. She had been awfully quiet during this whole discussion. When it was clear that Thor wasn't going to tell me anything, Frigga sighed softly and folded her hands neatly on her lap. Oh, man. This is bad, this is very bad.

"When you got here," Frigga started, "it was clear that no matter what we did or how quickly, you were not going to live. Thor brought you immediately to Odin and myself, asking that we turn you immortal, for his Jane's sake. After quick deliberation, we decided that we would."

What. _I'm... immortal? _Not going to lie, my first thought was, _Huh. Cool. _And then it hit me: I'm going to watch my family die. I'm going to have to live with myself. Forever.

Suddenly, I was mad. Spitting mad. I practically growled and stood up quickly. "Thor. Will you please take me to your brother." It wasn't a question; I was telling him to take me to him. So that I could rip off his skin, blind him, burn him, and see how he liked it.

Thor looked at me with wary eyes. "I don't think that's the best idea..."

"Oh, why not? It's not like she can do anything to me." I spun around, and saw a tall man with medium-length straight black hair standing in the doorway behind the man who must have been Odin. Odin certainly looked like a god and a king. He looked pretty badass. My eyes went back to the man with black hair. He was smiling slightly, like he knew some kind of joke that we didn't.

I balled my fists and glared at him, trying to make him feel the pain from the daggers shooting out of my eyes. He rolled his eyes. "Honestly, I don't understand why you're so mad. Any mortal would love to have the gift you've been given."

I was speechless with rage. I don't think I'd ever been so mad in my entire life.

"Gift?" My voice was deathly quiet. Loki kept the stupid smile on his face. "Gift. Right. It's like fucking Christmas morning to have your skin melt, your eyes go blind, and your head slam into some concrete all in one day." I was pleased to see the smile on his face falter. "And then realize that not only will you be living _forever_, but you'll have to out-live everyone you know, including family and friends and anyone else you may have loved. Best goddamn day ever, let me tell you."

My chest was heaving, and it was clear that everyone in the room was rather shocked at my outburst. To be truthful, I was taken aback a bit as well. I know that I have a temper, but I should have handled the situation with more grace, especially in front of royalty. I took a deep breath.

"Sorry. Okay, no I'm not. You deserved that, and more. I really should knee you where it hurts, but I won't. I'm better than that. I don't have to make people _hurt _to make myself look good."

Loki scowled, clearly annoyed by this comment. Good. I hoped I was giving him hell.

Odin cleared his throat. He hadn't spoken the whole time he'd been there. "Now that everything that was needed to be said is in the open, I came here with Loki to talk to you and Thor."

I looked at Thor, confused. Why would he need to talk to the two of us with Loki? Thor just looked at his father.

Odin continued, "I have spent three days deliberating what Loki's punishment should be. I have made my decision, and I feel that it will pan out accordingly. Darcy, you have much to learn about being immortal."

I interrupted, "What do you mean? What is there to learn? I just live forever, right?"

Odin smiled slightly. "Not quite. If you are to live on Earth as you are now, you must keep it a secret. From even your family and loved ones. It is crucial that you do this. You are also much stronger than you used to be. You must learn to control it so as to not reveal yourself to those around you."

I nodded. I had figured as much. What I _hadn't _figured, was what came out of Odin's mouth next.

"So, Loki, you are going to be joining Darcy and Thor on Earth, to help Darcy get used to this new state and to fulfill your punishment."

Both Loki and I just stared at him, open-mouthed. No way. I started, "But -"

Odin stopped me by putting a hand in the air. "This is my decision, and I have decided that Loki is to live with you in your place of residence, to make sure that you don't mess up. Because if you do, I will have no choice to force you to live the remainder of your everlasting life here, where your loved ones will never see you again." I grimaced. Ouch. Little harsh, there, old man.

Loki didn't look pleased, but he didn't argue any further than I had tried. "What is the rest of my punishment?"

Odin scratched his chin. "You are to work as - I think they are called - a cashier."

I burst into laughter. Like, lose my shit, doubled over kind of laughter. When I recovered, I looked at Loki and nearly doubled over again. The thought of him ringing up people's groceries was just hilarious. Especially while he was wearing that ridiculous black and green armored outfit.

I stole a glance at Thor, who had been quiet this entire time. He was looking at his father with an expression I couldn't read, but it looked like he knew something I didn't. I chose not to dwell on it, and clapped my hands together.

"Okay! So. Let's get this show on the road. The faster I know how to handle this immortality, the quicker I can get back to the remainder of my normal life." I grimaced, thinking that my normal life would only be a few more decades.

I looked around the room and noted that Frigga had left. The rest of us walked towards the Bifrost, and I saw Odin take Thor aside, leaving me standing alone with Loki for a second. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"You get the couch," was all I said to him. He just looked at me with this annoyingly bored look on his face. I just wanted to punch him so badly. I crossed my arms as Odin and Thor walked towards us.

"Heimdall will be checking up on you, to make sure you are fulfilling your punishment and helping Miss Lewis. I expect you will do as you're told." Loki's facial expression didn't change.

We walked forward, and Heimdall opened the magical portal-thing with all the fun colors, and we were swirled into the tunnel.

The only thing I could think was, _What have I just gotten into?_

__**A/N: Hello! Thank you for all the reviews, keep them coming! Also, I've decided to keep the rest of the story strictly in Darcy's POV, so sorry for the confusion with the changing POV for the first chapter. Also, sorry about how long it took me to get this chapter up, it's been a hectic summer! X  
**


	3. Angry Jane, Shopping, and Telescopes

Chapter 3: Angry Jane, Shopping, and Telescopes

When we landed - or crashed, which was what I did - at the site, I heard someone yell loudly. Startled, I looked around from my spot on the ground and saw Jane running towards us.

"Darcy!" she yelled, reaching down to help me up. "I was so worried! I got here as soon as I could, and have been waiting for you to come back. Are you okay? Is everything okay?"

I hesitated, wondering how I was going to tell her what happened to me without giving away that I was immortal. "Thor took me to Asgard, where they healed me. I'm much better now," I said, as brightly as I could without it looking like I was lying to her face. Which I wasn't, really. They _did _heal me, just not in the way Jane was now assuming.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're okay!" she yelled, and hugged me tightly. I hugged her back, wishing I could tell her everything. How was I going to do this?

When she let go of me, she immediately jumped into Thor's arms, raining kisses on his face. I looked away, smiling ruefully at their easy affection. I looked at Loki, who was looking at them with a cross between amazement and disgust. I rolled my eyes and turned back to Jane, figuring I needed to get this next part of the conversation out of the way.

"Jane, uh - there's something else, too." She let go of Thor reluctantly, just keeping his hand, and looked at me warily.

I cleared my throat. "Well, uh, you see, Loki here -" I gestured at him with a wave of my hand, "he's going to be staying with me for a little while."

Jane narrowed her eyes at Loki suspiciously. "Why?" she asked, her voice flat.

I looked at Loki and Thor pleadingly; I was so bad at lying, and I didn't know how to get myself out of this one. Lucky for me, Loki spoke up immediately.

"My punishment is to be a cashier at a local grocery; Darcy has agreed to help me acclimate myself here." Pfft, like I had a choice...

"Punishment? Punishment for what, exactly?"

Oh shit. She really doesn't miss anything, Jane. "Uh, well, Loki um..."

Loki rolled his eyes at my stuttering. "I blew up the abandoned building Darcy happened to be walking past when the explosion went off."

Jane immediately went red in the face, and began to yell, "You little _twit_, do you not even realize what you could have done? You deserve so much worse than a goddamn cashier job for nearly killing my BEST. FRIEND. YOU. ASS."

Loki didn't flinch, but merely looked down at the ground and took her verbal abuse in silence.

I put out my hand to touch her shoulder and she stop the yelling. "Jane, stop. I've only agreed to help him so that I can make sure he goes through hell while he's here." I could practically feel Loki scowling at me from behind me. "Trust me, I've got this all under control."

She took a deep breath. "Okay. If you're sure. Let's get out of this heat. C'mon, I'll take you and... _him _to your apartment."

I smiled at her. "Thanks, Jane." I looked over at Loki and something occurred to me. "Actually, could you drop us off at the mall? He needs something less... battle armor."

Laughing, Jane nodded. "Absolutely."

* * *

After three hours and a really awkward bus ride home, we finally reached my apartment. I had succeeded in talking to him as little as possible, mainly speaking only to order him to try something on. His new wardrobe consisted of mainly dark green and black tee-shirts with dark wash jeans and plain black shoes. Unfortunately, he had refused to change clothes in a bathroom at the mall, complaining that he'd have nowhere to put what he had on. Which was true, I suppose.

After unlocking the door and dumping his bags on the floor, I went into the kitchen to turn on my answering machine. I had one message. It was from my boss.

"Hello, Darcy, just wanted to see how you were doing... I know you're taking a few days off, but I just wanted to make sure you were doing alright. Give me a call." I deleted the message, telling myself I'd call him tomorrow and let him know.

I turned around and Loki was standing directly behind me. "AH!" I yelled, and jumped back. He raised his hands and chuckled.

"I'm sorry, didn't mean to scare you. Was that your... significant other on the phone?"

I scowled at him, still breathing heavily. "What the hell does it matter to you if that was my boyfriend or not?"

Scowling, he stated, "It doesn't. Just curious. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go change. May I use your shower?"

He was excusing himself as if _I _was the one who had been annoying him. Oh, this was going to be difficult. "Sure, whatever." I turned around to rummage through the cabinets as he turned to go to the bathroom with a bag of new clothes.

When I was sure he was gone, I rested my head against the cabinet in front of me. Why did it have to be me who gets stuck with him? What was Odin thinking? This is only going to make him rebel, it's not like it's going to teach him some lesson to be here. And a cashier? I mean, yeah, it's embarrassing for a god to be doing something so trivial, but it just doesn't seem like that bad of a punishment for nearly killing me.

Pushing my thoughts aside, I pulled out a box of macaroni and cheese and set some water on the stove to boil. I sat down at the table and picked up the book I'd left there a few days ago: Shakespeare's "Henry IV, Part 1."

I was very into it when a noise startled me and I looked up. I put the book down, put the noodles into the water, and walked into the hallway to investigate. I heard the noise again; it was a tapping, and it was coming from my "office" room.

I looked in, and Loki was investigating my telescope. He was sitting on the stool in front of it, and looking through the glass, tapping his foot while doing so. From where I stood, I could see the right side of him leaning towards the telescope, obviously enthralled with what he was seeing. Night had fallen since we had returned, and the stars should be very visible.

I took the time to lean against the doorframe and actually get a good look at him for the first time since I'd met him. Loki definitely wasn't hard to look at. The jeans and dark green shirt he'd gotten fit him nicely, and complemented his toned body. His damp black hair draped over his face and fell to his shoulders. He was actually very good-looking. Of course. The one man who had tried to kill me and most likely hated my guts - and whose guts I certainly hated at the moment - and he was hot. Just my luck.

I cleared my throat, and he looked up almost guiltily. I smiled slightly and gestured to the telescope. "That's my pride and joy. I love the stars, and Philip does a good job of showing me them."

Loki smiled the first genuine smile I'd seen on him. It was a good look for him. "Philip?"

I grinned. "Yes, Philip. Now," I said as I sat down in the desk chair across the room, "I would like you to know that I am still quite pissed at you."

He dropped the smile. "Ah. Yes. I've been meaning to apologize."

Raising my eyebrows, I asked, "Apologize? You didn't seem very sorry back in Asgard."

"I think you helped me put it into perspective. I didn't realize the amount of pain I'd caused you."

I sat back. Maybe what Thor kept saying was true; maybe he really had changed after he failed at trying to take over the world. "Well. An apology would be alright, then."

He raised his eyebrows, surprised at my direct approach and honesty. Then he got very serious and looked me right in the eye. "I am very sorry for the pain I caused you, and for forcing you into this new lifestyle."

My eyes widened a bit at his sincerity. "Apology accepted. Thank you."

He nodded and I stood up. "Would you like to play a game?" I wanted to at least try to make this arrangement bearable.

His eyebrows practically disappeared under his hairline. "A game?"

I smiled. "Yes. A game. Specifically, a card game. C'mon, let's go." Bewildered, he followed me into the kitchen. I smiled to myself, confident that he was about to lose a lot of card games.

* * *

"Done," Loki said once again, and I threw my cards down in frustration. We were playing speed, and he had beat me steadily every time since he'd gotten the hang of the rules.

And I thought for sure he'd be the one throwing his cards in frustration. Ugh.

"Okay, time for a new game. Let's play Go Fish."

He agreed, and I quickly learned that he was exceptional at this one as well, even though it was pretty much a game based on chance.

When I told him as much, he shook his head. "I don't think so. How else can you account for you having absolutely no matches at the end?" When I scowled at him, he laughed. My face softened slightly at the sound; he had an interesting laugh, almost like a "hehehehe" rather than a "hahaha". It was cute.

I yawned, and started putting the cards away. "We should get some sleep. I'll get you some blankets and a pillow."

After settling him a place on the pull-out couch, I saluted to him and said, "Goodnight, then."

He bowed his head at me in goodnight, and I walked to my room, completely disoriented by the change in events. It turned out that maybe, just maybe, he would be bearable to be around.

This might actually work out.

**A/N: Woo! I got an entire chapter written and proofread in under 24 hours! That's definitely a first for me! **

**Thank you so much to those of you who have reviewed, and even to those of you who have just given it a chance! :) Keep reviewing!**

**Also, I've been thinking that I might want to do a chapter in Loki's point of view after all. What do you guys think? I think it'd be interesting to see what he's thinking through some of this. :D Let me know!**


	4. The Depth of My Sincerity

Chapter 4: The Depth of My Sincerity

_LOKI'S POV_

I woke up feeling disoriented. Where was I?

Oh. Right. Earth. I'd forgotten my silly two-part punishment. While I didn't know how my... what was it called? Cashier job? Strange humans. Anyway, I didn't know how that was going to go, but the other part of the punishment was in full swing.

And it was very strange to live with a woman. There were items strewn all over the apartment, and I wasn't quite sure what to touch and what to leave alone. I was at a loss of what to do with myself, and that didn't set well with me.

Not to mention, she made me feel uncomfortable. For a while the night before, I had felt guilty for what I'd done. I'm not accustomed to feeling that sort of emotion. Although I felt that I didn't have as... malicious intentions that I'd had before the whole take-over-the-earth phase, I wasn't used to feeling legitimately guilty for something I'd done.

Damn those huge green eyes.

I got up off the couch, and folded up first the pull-out couch then my blankets and set them on the end, out of the way. I listened for any movement in the apartment, but it didn't appear that Darcy was awake yet. I went to the bathroom, and paused to marvel again at the sheer amount of products scattered across the surfaces of the room. I'd never seen so many pink and white and blue bottles in one place.

I'd been in there the night before, but I hadn't thought to explore because I was too lost in thought to even really register the thousands (okay, exaggeration) of bottles on the counter.

_But now, _I thought with a snicker, _I can take a glance around. And plan some things. _No one can expect me to live alone with a woman I've hardly known 24 hours and expect me to be on my utmost behavior. Trickery is in my blood.

I picked up the first white bottle I found. _Hair Frosting, _the label said. There was a picture of a girl with mostly dark brown hair, with a streak of bright blonde. I slowly grinned. Oh, this was perfect. I looked for a bottle marked _Shampoo_...

"Hey, how do you turn this thing on?" I asked, fiddling with what I assumed turned on the thing in front of the couch.

Darcy had woken up about a half an hour before, and had just gotten out of the shower. She had a towel over her head and was in the process of making food for herself.

She looked over her shoulder from her place in front of the counter in the kitchen. "Press the big red button."

I looked at the contraption, pressed the button, and the screen came on, crackling like a thousand gun shots. I yelled and threw the stupid thing that had caused the unforgiving noise, and covered my ears.

Darcy came in the living room holding her food and scowled at me, scooping down to get the machinery off the floor. Her shirt didn't hide very much of her, erm... bosom area that way. I can't say I could complain about the view. My eyes stayed locked on her chest as she got back up and looked at me.

"Ew, you perv! Here, take the remote and quit staring at my chest." She threw the, uh, remote at me and plopped down on a chair. I pressed the power button again, hoping it would stop the horrible noise.

"You have to press the button marked STB before pressing power. Try it again." I followed her instructions and the screen turned on again, this time to... _what the hell is this?!_

"What... is this?" I asked, my eyes wide.

Darcy shrugged. "Spongebob."

I looked at her like she was speaking in a different language. Which she was. She looked at me and paused, halfway through chewing. "Oh," she said, and swallowed her food. "You've never seen a TV before."

I shook my head. She opened her mouth to say something, and then closed it and furrowed her brow as she scratched her head. "My head is really itchy..."

I tried not to smile. And succeeded. "Maybe you have... what's it called? Lice."

She threw an exasperated look my way. "Of course I don't have lice. I don't know why I'm so... itchy..." She put her bowl down and took off the towel to get better scratching access. And I couldn't help it. I laughed.

She looked sharply at me. "What? What is it?" I only laughed harder, and she ran to the bathroom.

At first, there was silence. And then...

"WHAT DID YOU DO!?" she screamed at the top of her lungs. I heard the clash of one of the bottles hitting the floor and closed my eyes to laugh a little harder. It had been too long since I'd messed with someone this well.

She came stomping back into the living room, her hair brushed down to her waist, and with blonde clumps among the dark brown. I laughed harder.

"You think this is FUNNY?" She looked positively livid. I was ecstatic.

"A little bit, yeah."

She was silent for a moment. She closed her eyes and breathed in deep through her nose. I bit back another chuckle. "You are coming with me to the store. Now." She left to get something out of her room. I sighed, still smiling, and put my shoes on. Darcy came back five minutes later with her hair jammed into a gray hat. How she got all of her hair into that hat was a mystery to me.

Darcy opened the door and gestured for me to walk out in front of her. I exited, and she slammed the door behind her. We got into her car and she sped down the road.

Honestly, I didn't see what the big deal was. Sure, I had ruined her hair, but it's just hair. It'll grow out and back to normal.

When I told her this, she scowled at me. "Yeah, in like two years. Seriously, though, Loki, I didn't expect you to begin making my life a living hell this early. What's your deal?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't have a _deal._ This is who I am. It could have been much worse for you. That was a minor joke."

She looked at me with, of course, anger and disdain, but I could sense some sort of disappointment as well.

"I thought you had changed."

I frowned. I _had _changed. I knew that. I didn't have the desire to control or kill people. I didn't want eternal domination or anything like that. I was serious when I told Darcy the day before that I was sorry for what I did to her. Honestly, I hadn't meant for that to happen.

But that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy messing with people.

We arrived at a store called Walmart, a big blue building with two entrances: "Low Prices" and "Food Center". She got out of the car and proceeded to walk towards the "Food Center" entrance.

"Why aren't you going through the Low Prices entrance? Don't you want lower prices?"

She looked back at me with the hint of a smile on her face. "It's low prices everywhere. Or so they say."

Inside the giant building with rows and rows of food and clothes and boxes with people on them and people with blue and light brown on, Darcy headed straight for the area of the store marked "Beauty".

Five minutes later, we were back in her car and she had a box of what I assumed was something to color her hair back. Damn. My joke wouldn't last as long as I'd like.

After a few minutes of silence in the car, Darcy said, "So. You don't know what a TV is. You'd never seen a telescope. You probably have no idea how to cook food. Do you know anything about life on this planet?"

I frowned. No, not really. "Sure, I do."

She glanced at me skeptically. "Really."

"Absolutely. I know that humans are weak minded and weak willed, and will do whatever they can to get something done their way, and as quick as possible."

She scoffed. "That's not always true about us! We also show emotions and love, something clearly you know nothing about."

That hit a wounded spot. "What do you mean, 'us' and 'we'? In case you forgot, let me enlighten you: you aren't human anymore!"

That shut her up real quickly. But I could practically feel the waves of hostility rolling off of her, and when we reached her apartment complex, she got out of the car and slammed the door as hard as she could.

"Darcy." She didn't answer me as she went into the kitchen to throw open the cabinets and fridge to gather things to make food. She got celery out of the fridge and put it on the cutting board, and took out peanut butter from the cabinet. The combination looked quite disgusting.

"Are you going to... eat those together?" I asked apprehensively.

She growled, "Of course I am. Are you stupid?"

She started to cut the celery and I shook my head angrily. "I don't even know why you're eating. You don't have to, you know. Remember: _immortal._"

I watched almost in slow motion as she fumbled with the knife and sliced her hand open.

"SHIT! OH MY GOD, OW!" She was jumping up and down, holding her hand close to her. I walked over and took her arm from her to lead her to the sink.

"You must wash off the blood."

She gaped at me. "What are you talking about, 'wash off the blood'? I just SLICED MY HAND OPEN. I should be on my way to the emergency room, I need -"

She stopped as I ran her hand through the water, and I rubbed my thumb across the cut, showing her that it was completely healed. She paled.

"But... that was a really bad cut... I should have to go to the hospital..." She grew quiet as I shook my head.

"No, Darcy. You don't have to go to the hospital any more. Ever again." It didn't _really _occur to me until then that this was a huge deal for Darcy. Not just the cut, but everything: the immortality, having to watch me all the time, her near-death experience. And as a tear began to roll down her face, I suddenly felt very... very... concerned. For her. I reached up and brushed away the tear.

"It's going to be okay."

Still she said nothing, just stared at me with an expression I couldn't seem to read. I blinked and let go of her hand that I'd forgotten I was still holding. Coughing, I stammered, "Erm, you're fine. I need to... go find this job that I'm supposedly supposed to be getting. I'll, er, see you in a little while."

As I was walking out the door, with Darcy still staring at me, all I could think was: _What is wrong with me? _

**A/N: Yay! New chapter completed! So sorry for the delay; I started college and got really busy and everything's all different and weird and I haven't had much time for leisurely writing! But I'm back now, hopefully I get the next chapter up sooner than it took me to do this one. :) Also, I just read over this, and it's kind of short. Sorry! I'll make the next one longer, promise! **


	5. Tension

Chapter 5: Tension

_DARCY POV_

The next week or so passed without much excitement. Loki had been given the punishment of Walmart cashier (I still laugh when I see him walk out the door with khakis and a blue polo shirt on), and I was back at work as well. Even with the knowledge that he was the reason I was immortal and I knew I had every right to hate him, I couldn't bring myself to do it. He was just too nice to me. We got along much better after that first prank he pulled and have been living together much more harmoniously than I would have dared dream we could.

Except for the goddamn elephant in the room.

I suppose there are two elephants, actually. There's my immortality - _fucking immortality _- and the fact that I have no idea what to do about it. That's the first elephant - kind of a two-parter. How long can I live here? Am I going to get some sort of weird power or something? Do I get sick anymore? No one is telling me a goddamn thing and I have been silently been freaking out for a week. Soon, and very soon indeed, I am going to burst.

And the second elephant - sweet mother of God, so much sexual tension is going on in this apartment, and I honestly think I'm the only one who notices. I think Loki knows there's tension, but I think he's too much of a... gentleman? No, more like _prude_ - to notice that it's tension of the sexual persuasion. Which is just making it ten times worse, I think.

There's just something about him, in the way he carries himself, how he talks, the kind gestures he does sometimes that seem to come so naturally to him... he is undeniably sexy. And he doesn't understand technology or what he calls "human humor", which makes him cute. Cute and sexy. Doesn't get much better than that.

EXCEPT IT DOES. He doesn't realize that he's this desirable. Doesn't flaunt anything, and certainly doesn't make any moves, which is both remarkable and incredibly frustrating.

After that second night here, when I cut my finger open and he explained to me that it was fine, and stared into my eyes like I was the only person on Earth - dear Lord, I thought I was going to melt, right there on my kitchen floor. I thought for sure he was going to kiss me. And as much as a part of me is still so pissed off at him for doing the things he did to me, I wanted him to. Badly.

But, I guess, it does not do to dwell on dreams... or something. I need to re-read Harry Potter. It's been too long.

* * *

I was sitting on my couch, reading the first Harry Potter book, when Loki entered the apartment, back from work.

"Hey," I said absentmindedly, still immersed in my book.

"I have the perfect idea. Let's run away and never come back to this dreadful place. Let's just move to a place where Walmart doesn't exist. I suggest Álfheimr. You'd really like it there, I believe." Loki plopped down on the couch beside me, rubbing his temples.

"Headache?" I bookmarked my place, confident that this was going to be an interesting conversation.

"Gods don't get headaches. It's just a... it's not a headache."

I smiled. "Here, turn towards me and close your eyes." I turned sideways so that I was facing him.

Loki's eyes shot open and he looked at me, bewildered. "What are you going to do?"

I laughed. "I'm not going to attack you or anything. Just close your eyes and turn towards me. I'm going to give you a head massage. I guarantee the headache will be gone in five minutes." Since I really didn't think he could actually get a headache because of a medical reason, I was sure that it was just stress and noise that caused it. He just needed to relax.

It took him a moment, but he finally complied. He turned towards me, gave me another odd look, and closed his eyes. It took all I had in me not to sigh. He was incredibly hot. Damn.

I placed my fingers on his temples and gently began to massage his head, careful not to push too hard. His mouth opened slightly and he breathed more deeply. "You've just got to relax," I said quietly, practically bursting with the need to pounce on him. Get it together, Darcy, find your self-control and hold on to it tightly.

After massaging his temples for a couple of minutes, I started to move my hands into his hair, massaging his scalp. My mother used to do that for me when I suffered from migraines as a little girl, and I had to keep reminding myself of that in order to reign in the sexual feelings.

When my hands reached the sides and back of his head and he moaned very quietly, I knew I wasn't going to be able to take it much longer. At that point, I was just torturing myself. I removed my hands from his hair and put a smile on my face to hide the agony I was feeling.

"Feel better?"

He opened his eyes and stared directly into mine. They were smoldering. Shit, he definitely felt the sexual tension. He was definitely attracted.

"Much better. Thank you, Darcy." His voice was extremely husky, and I just nodded because there was no way in hell I could even hope to get a word out.

Because I didn't trust myself at all, I got up and stretched, breaking the searing eye contact. "Would you like a cup of tea? I would very much like one. I'll be right back." I hurried into the kitchen and got the water on the stove to boil before resting my back against the counter and closing my eyes for a moment.

This was wrong in so many ways. Loki... wasn't good. At least, he wasn't supposed to be. I took him to my apartment as part of his punishment thinking that he was just going to be snarky and wreaking havoc every chance he got. It was the exact opposite, and it was killing me. I was actually starting to like him.

Also, kissing him didn't sound like a bad idea half of the time. Which it definitely is! I mean, getting romantically involved with a man who is both a criminal and a god is definitely not my style. I tend to go for the safe guys, the ones who focus on school-work and don't go on mass-murdering sprees in another realm. But he's so hot...

As you can see, I was very conflicted.

All of a sudden, I felt someone was watching me. Knowing it was Loki, I opened my eyes, and he was standing directly in front of me.

"You're very quiet, you know. I wonder if I'll ever become that quiet, because it seems like a really cool thing to-"

I guarantee you guessed correctly, yes, Loki cut me off by kissing me, right on the mouth, without any warning. The feel of his lips was something that I wish I could describe perfectly, but I know I just can't. And, damn, he knew what he was doing.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and forgot to think. He placed his hands on my waist and I reached my hands into his hair, deepening the kiss. Kissing him was like finally remembering that word on the tip of your tongue. Like finding water in a drought. Like every cliché you can think of, _only better. _

I heard the screeching of the water boiling through the kettle, and Loki pulled back sharply, as if having just been slapped. I quickly moved the kettle to a cool burner to make the noise stop. Loki backed up from me, a peculiar expression on his face.

"I'm sorry. I just had to - had to know what that would be like. I'm sorry, it won't happen again."

My heart hit my stomach, hard. I looked at the floor, confused and hurt and did I mention fucking confused?

"I see. Well. Help yourself to some t-tea." I stuttered out the last word as the tears started to come. Silently damning myself for being such an emotional person, I walked out of the kitchen and into my bedroom, shutting the door and sitting on my bed.

Wh-what? He did it because he had to know what it'd be like, and then... he said it won't happen again? What the hell is that supposed to mean? I'm not a bad kisser. I know I'm not. Did he just realize that - that he didn't like me in that way? That I'm not adequate enough for him?

Well, goddamn it, I wasn't sorry about that kiss. And it hurt, worse than it really should have, to know that he was.

A plan formed in my mind as I wiped away the useless tears. I may not be sorry that the kiss happened, but soon, and very soon, he sure as hell is going to be sorry for apologizing for something so amazing.

And he's going to want more. Oh, yes. But he'll soon realize that I'm not going to let him have it.

**A/N: Oh my goodness, I am deeply sorry for the delay between chapters. I didn't really know where to take it after the last chapter, and then my computer broke and I was without one for a month, but now I have plans and a computer! WOO! Hopefully I'll have the next chapter finished within the next couple of days. Thank you for your kind reviews! :)**


	6. This is Agony

**A/N: Just a warning, the point of view will be changing a lot in this one. Sorry if it confuses you. I will put an italicized reminder before the point of view changes. Thank you for the continued support, and some of the stuff happening in this chapter was requested, so I hope you enjoy it! **

Chapter 6 - This is Agony

_LOKI POV_

I woke up slowly. As soon as the memories of the night before came flooding back, I closed my eyes tightly and willed myself to go back to sleep. Forever.

But, of course, I couldn't. I had to face the colossal mistake I had made.

Darcy probably hated me. I wouldn't blame her. We had been getting along so well until the night before. And then I screwed it up (that's the correct expression, right? I heard it on a television program). She must really, truly hate me now. She didn't even like me - and she has no reason to - and I went and kissed her without thinking. She probably thought that I was taking advantage of her. She was probably trying to pull me away when she put her hands in my hair, and she must have been making noises of discomfort. I have no reason to hope otherwise.

I groaned and rolled myself off the couch to land ungracefully on the floor. I heard a door open down the hall and footsteps walking towards me.

"That can't be too comfortable, lying on the floor like that."

I looked up and sprang to my feet. I fumbled with my hands, unsure of what to do and where to look and my words caught in my throat. What... in the hell was she wearing?!

"What's wrong?" she said, looking genuinely concerned, but there was something else in her eyes, something mischievous. She straightened the green silk night gown that hugged her body to only mid-thigh, almost all of her legs exposed. And her legs were... nice. Very, very nice.

I stuttered for a few moments before finally finding my voice. "I... uh, I... Aren't you cold?" was all I could come up with.

She smiled. "Nope. I'm a little hot, actually." She bit her lip and I exhaled. As much as I wanted to walk up to her and continue where we left off - oh, I so wanted to - I knew that I had to think of her, and how much she hates me. Her current torture only puts it more into perspective. She was punishing me for kissing her.

"Excuse me," I breathed. I brushed past her and held my breath as our arms touched. I practically ran to the bathroom for a cold shower.

* * *

"That'll be $25.99," I said in a monotonous tone. It was 4 o'clock, almost time to leave this torturous place. I waited while the woman in front of me dug around for exact change, and practically started mumbling under my breath. I was convinced that the most annoying mortals on Earth were the ones who dug around for exact change while paying for something.

"97, 98, 99!" the woman exclaimed, clearly happy with herself. I sighed and took her money, depositing it into the cash register and silently cursing Odin for thinking up this ridiculous punishment. Every day was the same: the same stupid mortals, the same blue and white environment, and the same experiences with people who buy things that let me know entirely too much about their lives.

I closed my eyes for a brief moment, remembering my encounter with Darcy earlier that morning. I had no idea what she was up to, but I certainly didn't mind the view…

"Whatcha smiling about?" My eyes shot open and, lo and behold, there was Darcy. And she was wearing a shirt which would have shown the entirety of her breasts had it been just a centimeter lower. Quickly averting my eyes so she wouldn't accuse me of staring, I looked at what she put on the counter: a box of condoms and a tube of lipstick. I recognized the condoms from a television show Darcy had made me watch. I almost wish I was still blissfully ignorant. What did she need those for? Does she have a significant other? I became angry just imagining it.

Looking back up at her with a puzzled expression, I started to scan her items. She smiled wider. "What?"

Something in her eyes told me she wanted me to react a certain way. Well, that's not happening today. Plastering the most nonchalant expression on my face as I could, I said, "Nothing. Just wasn't expecting to see you here today. How was work?"

She narrowed her eyes very slightly, which informed me that I had responded correctly in order to ruin her plan, whatever it was. Then she smiled and blabbed on about something that I couldn't quite listen to because I was so distracted with her shirt and the condoms and why she's acting so odd and just her in general.

We made small talk for about a minute longer until another customer came up behind her to check out their things. "I'll see you when I get off work, then."

She turned back towards me with her bag in her hand. "Actually, I've got a date of sorts, so I won't be home until late. Don't wait up." With that, she turned back around and walked out of the store.

Darcy had… a date? Of sorts? What the hell was that supposed to mean? She really does have… what are they called here? Oh, a boyfriend. She has one. And she's going on a date with him… tonight. And won't be back until late. And just bought condoms.

This is not okay with me.

* * *

_DARCY POV_

I practically skipped to my car after my encounter with Loki. Almost everything had gone according to plan. He didn't quite react the way I was expecting, but I could see the anger and jealousy in his eyes, so I was considering it a win anyway.

Of course, I didn't actually have a "sort of date" that night. I hadn't had a date that required lipstick and an entire box of condoms since... okay, I had never had a date like that.

No, I was going to see Jane. She and Thor had gotten permission from S.H.I.E.L.D. to move back to New Mexico so that Thor could keep an eye on Loki. I was positive Loki didn't know about this yet, so he shouldn't suspect that I was actually with Jane.

I couldn't get the look he had on his face when he saw me in the store out of my mind. He was very clearly jealous, which made me ecstatic. That meant he liked me. And don't think I didn't notice him staring at my chest, which was the entire purpose of the skanky shirt.

I got into my car and drove to the hotel where Jane and Thor were staying until they found a suitable apartment. When I got up to their room, Jane opened the door and hugged me hard.

"Darcy! I've missed you!"

I huffed, trying to breathe while Jane was hugging me so hard I was sure my lungs were going to collapse. "I… missed… you… too."

"Oh!" Jane exclaimed, finally releasing me. "I'm sorry, didn't mean to squash you. Here, come in, Thor's gone out to get us some food for dinner."

I laughed. "Thor? Grocery shopping? That's almost as funny as Loki being a cashier. Almost."

She threw me a bottle of water from the mini fridge and we sat down at a small table by the window. "Speaking of Loki, tell me how everything is going. I'm still so mad you had to go through this. It's him who needs to be punished, not you." She still seemed very livid about the whole ordeal.

I sighed. "Jane, it's really not as bad as you think. Loki is… well, he's not what I expected, at all. Actually…" And I proceeded to tell her everything that's happened, including the kiss and his response to it.

"And so now I've resorted to being the biggest tease in the world in order to torture him, and he is just driving me _crazy._" I finished with a deep breath and looked carefully at Jane. Her eyes were wide.

"Darcy… am I hearing you correctly? You actually, sincerely, like him?"

I scoffed. "Like him? I've just told you how he's driving me up the wall! I'd like to strangle him right now!"

She narrowed her eyes. "But not because he's annoying and horrible to be around. You want to strangle him because you're confused and conflicted. He's driving you nuts because you really like him and you don't think you should."

My protest caught in my throat, and I looked down, knowing there was truth in her words. "You're right," I whispered. "I don't want to like him. He tried to take over this planet. He is Loki, God of mischief and lies. Liking him would be a disaster for me. But…"

"But," Jane said, smiling slightly, "you like him nonetheless. Sometimes we can't control it. But please, Darcy, tell me: do you think he's changed? Thor has been trying to reassure me that he's not the same as he was when he did all the awful things to our planet, but I'm not so confident."

I looked her in the eyes and told her the absolute truth. "He _is _different now. He's kind. At least, he's kind to me. And he has no reason to be." Except that he practically killed me and turned me immortal so that I have to watch all those I love die. I think something like that calls for some kindness. "He doesn't want to take over the world anymore. He really seems to have changed for the better."

Jane looked at me carefully for a moment, and grabbed my hand. "If you think he's changed, then I will take your word for it. And if you like him, maybe you should go for it. I know he's a god and all, but I'm with Thor, and so is he. It's worked out for me so far. Just please, please, Darcy, be careful."

"Oh, Jane," I said, leaning forward to give her a hug from across the small table, "I will. I'll be as careful as I can."

She smiled and pulled away to rest her arms on the table. "So, this teasing thing, how's that going? Any response from him?"

I grinned mischievously and began telling my best friend every detail of his responses to my revenge.

* * *

_LOKI POV_

Where was she?!

I paced the floor in the living room, wearing cotton pajama bottoms and a cotton T-shirt. After a few more minutes of pacing, though, I took off the shirt because Darcy kept it warm in the apartment and I was getting worked up.

Of course I was getting worked up. I didn't want her to be with someone else. I wanted her to be sitting in her chair, getting exasperated with me because I can't figure out some kind of odd technology. I want her to be annoyed with me because I keep winning her card games. I wanted her to be sitting on her small chair in front of her telescope Phillip, thinking about the wonders of the rest of the universe like she so much enjoys doing.

"Ugh," I muttered, throwing myself down onto the couch, disgusted with myself. This woman was making me feel like a fool. I couldn't even explain what was happening to me. The only thing I knew for certain was that I wanted to be near her. I certainly wanted to kiss her again. But I didn't know how she felt…

I heard a key in the door, and I stood up. I was about to ask Darcy numerous questions, but the words caught in my throat as I saw her.

She was wearing a short dark green dress, skin-tight and entirely too revealing for the public eye. Her hair was wildly curled, like someone had just run their hands through it, and her shoes could have passed for weapons, the heel was so tall. She looked… actually, she looked quite ridiculous. She didn't look like Darcy.

I crossed my arms. "Where have you been? It's nearly one in the morning. For all I know, you'd been kidnapped or in a car accident."

She leaned on the wall while she took her shoes off. For a short moment, I would have sworn she was staring at my chest. "You're not my father. What does it matter where I was and how late I stayed out? I told you earlier not to wait up."

"I'm glad I did wait up. You're dressed like you've been at one of those places we saw on television where men throw dollar bills at scantily dressed women."

She opened her mouth in surprise. "Are you saying I look like a stripper?"

"Er… Yes, you do. What possessed you to wear that dress in public?"

"How do you know I wore this in public?"

I sighed. "Judging from the way you're standing like you're sore and that you're still sweating, you've either been dancing or you've just had copious amounts of sex."

She raised an eyebrow. "And you'll never know which. Now if you'll excuse me, this stripper needs a hot bath."

Eyes wide, I watched her walk away towards her bedroom. Jealousy was coursing through me violently. I sat down and attempted to calm myself as I waited for her to get out of the bath. I had to tell her how I felt. Maybe she feels the same, and that's why she's torturing me this way. Maybe she didn't, and I could live with that, as long as she knew. It's not like I love her or anything. I just want her to stop torturing me.

I had just made the decision to tell her how I feel and stood up when I heard her bedroom door slam open and Darcy walking – no, _stomping _– down the hallway to the living room. Her hair was wet and she was wearing cotton pajamas like mine. I opened my mouth to tell her how I felt when she practically exploded.

"Has none of this affected you at all? Do _I _not affect you at all? I've been trying so hard to make you squirm today and I'm starting to think you don't desire me at all. Maybe I'm just being stupid. But you kissed me last night, and it was wonderful and then you said you were sorry for it and that it wouldn't happen again and I don't understand what I did wrong." Her eyes started to water and she stopped there, clearly choking up.

I stepped closer to her, aghast and a little confused. If what she said was true, then I had made a very big mistake. I hurt her feelings. "I didn't realize you felt this way. The only reason I said that I was sorry and that it wouldn't happen again was because I thought you couldn't stand me. I had kissed you without your permission, something I had no right to do, especially given the circumstances. You have every right to hate me, and I am still so sorry for what I did to you a few weeks ago. I will never be able to express my regret fully." I paused, and she spoke up, tears dried off her cheeks, but her eyes still glossy.

"Loki, I've forgiven you for that. I know you didn't mean to harm me, and sometimes things happen that are out of our control. It's okay."

I shook my head. "It will never be okay, but thank you for your forgiveness. Not many people have given me that. Back to what I was saying, though, about the kiss; I don't regret it at all. How could I regret something that was so perfect? I merely said that for your sake, because I believed that you loathed me."

She took a step closer to me and wrapped her arms around my neck. I put one arm around her waist. She looked up at me and said, "So, you want to kiss me again, then?"

I grinned and nodded. Before she could lean up to kiss me, though, I put a finger on her lips. "Wait. First, where have you been tonight, and what were the items you bought earlier for?"

She laughed, hard. I could've listened to that laugh for decades. That thought scared me, and I pushed it out of my mind to focus on what she was saying. "The things I bought this morning were solely to tease you and make you jealous. I had no intent to use them. Well, the lipstick maybe, but not the condoms. And tonight, I was out dancing with Jane. She and Thor returned here earlier today. Don't worry, though; I didn't actually wear that dress in public. I changed in my car."

I shook my head and leaned my lips down to within a breath of hers. "You are quite the woman, Darcy Lewis."

Our lips finally met and it was just as amazing as the first time, except perhaps better because no one was caught by surprise. I wrapped my arms tightly around her and it was like she fit perfectly to me. Kissing Darcy was like nothing I had ever experienced, and I had experienced a lot of things in my time. After a few minutes of kissing, Darcy leaned back to look at me.

"And you are quite the god, Loki Laufeyson."

**A/N: YAY! That chapter was so much fun to write. This one was especially long, so I hope it keeps you satisfied for a few more days. I've got wonderful plans for this story, and I don't expect it to be ending anytime in the near future. Yes, the story is only just beginning for these two, and they have a lot to come in their future. Review and tell me what you think, anything you'd like to see happen, what you don't like, anything! **** Thank you!**


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